Being Okay
by The Goliath Beetle
Summary: Bones gets shot. B/B one-shot. Need I say more? Rated because I'm paranoid.


**A/N: This was just a random oneshot I came up with. On with the story...**

He saw it happen in slow motion. And at the critical moment, his feet had decided to disobey him. His head was screaming to help her, but his body was standing numbly in place, stubbornly not letting him move. He watched the bullet slice through the air at a deadly speed, his mind taking it in in a deliberate manner. There wasn't even enough time to shout her name.

She yelped, and gasped, a dark stain already pooling on her chest, soaking the cloth that covered her body, and dropping her to the ground. A cold sneer rang out, sending bubbling rage through his body. He ignored it for only one second, yelling to see if she was alright, and getting only silence as his response.

Letting the fury take over, he aimed his gun and fired at the man, sending a clear shot that passed through the middle of his ribs, puncturing the heart and lungs. His enemy didn't even see that coming. The adversary fell downwards, hitting the road, dead instantly.

Booth didn't even bother seeing the man fall. He ran to her side, scared at the amount of blood. His fingers found his phone, and blindly dialed 9-1-1. "C'mon Bones!" he cried, shaking her. "Hold on, it'll be okay. Just hold on. Hold on!" He could hear the sirens in the distance.

The ride in the ambulance was the most terrifying he had ever experienced. They kept doing stuff to her – pumping in blood...giving her oxygen...And all the while, her usually warm hands were getting colder, and colder. But Booth held on, hoping to be even some kind of lifeline.

An irrevocable feeling of numb gripped him. He couldn't shake off the shock, and anger that welled inside him. Angry and shocked at himself. He could have stopped the bullet. He could have pushed her away from the danger. It didn't matter the slightest if he was killed, for she'd still be fine. And that was all that he cared about.

But his body hadn't responded in time. In all those years of military and FBI training, that shouldn't have happened. He shouldn't have just frozen like that. He was sure he would never forgive himself if he never heard her laugh or see her smile. He would never forgive himself if he couldn't eat at the diner with her. He would never forgive himself if he could never see that socially awkward behavior again...

The ER was hell. He muttered prayers under his breath. He drank at least three coffees to calm his nerves. He tried to sit and wait, but those ugly plastic chairs were no help. Finally he resolved to pacing, and whispering curses about guns, violence and the world in general.

He was getting odd looks from the doctors, nurses and other patients and their family and friends. The FBI agent had patches of blood on his clothing, from trying to revive her, and his pacing was unnerving.

Finally, after what seemed like centuries, a young nurse came up to him. "Agent Booth?" she asked softly. When he nodded, she said, "Dr. Brennan is very severely injured." She paused, and studied his reaction. His face had lost all its colour. She continued, "Her condition his stable, but she is deeply unconscious and has lost a lot of blood."

Booth rubbed his face, waiting for the worst. And he got it.

"We are not sure if she will be..." The nurse stopped, and her voice turned caring, "We are not sure if she will be alright."

Booth's legs gave way and he landed on his chair. The nurse looked stricken, probably not expecting such a reaction from an FBI agent. "Agent Booth! Are you alright?"

Booth didn't have the strength to tell her that no, of course he was not alright. His partner and best friend was dying, and he still had so much to say to her. "I need to see her," he managed weakly.

The nurse nodded, and Booth followed her to Brennan's room. As he entered, she said, "If there is an emergency, I'll be at the nurse's station," and she walked off.

So vulnerable. Booth had never seen her so vulnerable. Her face was death pale, and her beautiful hair was strewn across her pillow. IV fluid dripped into her, as the heart monitor beeped steadily. Booth didn't remember ever being as scared as he currently was. He pulled up a chair and sat next to her.

The cold antiseptic smell of the hospital filled his nostrils, and he noted that hospitals always felt death-like. He held her hand, her cold, weak hand, and sent a silent prayer to God. "Come on, Bones," he said. "You'll be fine. Please, wake up." His plea was answered with silence.

Booth sat there for hours, holding her hand. He had come to hate the silence, and was constantly filling it with idle conversation, as though she was perfectly alright. But just pretending was useless, because even he noticed his voice was an octave or so higher.

He didn't even realise when Angela, Cam, Hodgins, Wendell and Sweets entered. Only when he heard a soft sniffle did he look up from Brennan's white face and notice his friends. Angela was quietly crying over Hodgins' shoulder, as he rubbed her hand soothingly. Cam looked grave, and Wendell was silent. Sweets looked downcast, if not worried.

All of them waited for her for hours, and again, Booth didn't realise when they left, until Angela squeezed his shoulder reassuringly and walked out.

Booth stared at Brennan's beautiful face, noting her features. Even unconscious, she looked beautiful – a rare gift not many had. He kept staring at her for hours on end, never noticing how late in the night it was or the first rays of morning. He kept rubbing her hand, trying to keep it warm like it usually was.

"Come on Temperance," he whispered. "Wake up."

Silence.

He had about given up hope, and sat back on his chair, closing his eyes, in any attempt to get some sleep. It wasn't working; he was all too aware of the drop in temperature of her hand. Tears threatened to fall. Then, quite suddenly, something happened.

He heard the most beautiful thing in the world. His partner's...His best friend's...Best friend's or possibly more...he heard her voice. It was groggy and laced with a tinge of pain, but it was her's.

"Booth...?"

Booth's eyes flew open, too shocked to speak. He saw her...her blue eyes... There was a small smile on her delicate face, as any attempt to be strong in her situation. "I'm right here, Bones," he managed to say. Brown met sapphire, and there was that spark... And at that moment he knew, that everything was going to be okay.

**A/N: Yeah, I don't own Bones. Please review. Thanks for reading. **


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